All students majoring in Indonesian studies must complete this course as one of the two core courses. This course deals with central issues in contemporary scholarship on Indonesia, emphasising the dynamics of social relations in specific historical contexts, questioning a number of dominant concepts, and current issues in the light of recent theoretical insights. The unifying focus of the course is on the 'constructedness' of social realities, with specific references to Indonesia. This allows students to study not only about the facts and figures ('‘what') of a given phenomena, but 'how' these facts and figures have come into being, whether these facts are given or open to debates,' why' some facts are more debatable sometimes than others; and 'how' they may change over time.
Students will consider the theoretical bases of such views, and their critiques. Selected key concepts in contemporary social and cultural analyses as used in analyses of aspects of social life in Indonesia will be examined. No prior knowledge of Indonesia is required.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
On successful completion of this course, students will be able to:1. identify issues of interest in the field under consideration;
2. discuss these issues coherently and persuasively;
3. assess arguments made in the field;
4. explain the complex attitudes people have to these issues;
5. analyse and compare relevant data;
6. collaborate with other students and staff to select and combine materials for a case study;
7. research, present and justify the results of their collaboration with other students and staff with respect to the case studies;
8. reflect on and articulate how their own views on the field have developed over the course of the semester
Indicative Assessment
* Weekly class participation (ongoing) and 4 short tutorial notes due 48 hours prior to class meetings 40%
(weekly)
* One essay plan, 750 words (20%) due mid-semester;
* One long essay 2,500 words (40%), due in the early exam period
The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.
Workload
The course requires three contact hours each week and from four to five hours a week outside the contact hours.
Requisite and Incompatibility
Prescribed Texts
Burr, Vivien (1995) An Introduction to Social Constructionism, London & New York: Routledge.Chalmers, Ian (2006) Indonesia; an Introduction to Contemporary Traditions, Oxford University Press.
Preliminary Reading
INDONESIA’S HISTORICAL LEGACIES
Cribb, Robert (1999) “Nation: Making Indonesia”, in D. Emmerson (ed.), Indonesia Beyond Suharto, Armonk, NY: Asia Society, pp. 3-38.
SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION OF REALITY
Burr, Vivien (1995) “Introduction; What Is Social Constructionism?”, in An Introduction to Social Constructionism, London & New York: Routledge, pp. 1-16.
Fechter, Anne-Meike (2005) “The Other stares back: Experiencing Whiteness in Jakarta”, Ethnography 6 (1): 87-103.
NATIONAL CULTURE: PRIDE AND PREJUDICE
Noszlopy, Laura (ed.) (2006) “The Schapelle Corby Show: Drugs, Media and Society”, The Australian Journal of Anthropology, 17 (1): 70-85.
Zurbuchen, Mary S. (1990) “Images of Culture and National Development in Indonesia: The Cockroach Opera”, Asian Theatre Journal, 7 (2): 127-49.
GLOBALISATION CHALLENGES
Coutas, Penelope (2008) “Fame, Fortune, Fantasi”, in A. Heryanto (ed.), Popular Culture in Indonesia: Fluid Identities in Post-Authoritarian Politics, London & New York: Routledge, pp. 111-29.
Wallach, Jeremy (2003) “Goodbye My Blind Majesty” in H.M. Berger and M.T. Carroll (eds), Global Pop, Local Language, Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, pp. 53-86.
ETHNICITY: CELEBRATION, COMMERCIALISATION & ERASURE
Yamashita, Shinji (1994) “Manipulating Ethnic Tradition: the Funeral Ceremony, Tourism, and Television among the Toraja of Sulawesi”, Indonesia, 58: 69-82.
Sen (2006) “‘Chinese’ Indonesians in national cinema”, Inter-Asia Cultural Studies, 7 (1): 171-84.
RELIGIOUS PIETY, CONSUMER LIFESTYLE, MORAL PANIC
Smith-Hefner, Nancy J. (2007) “Javanese Women and the Veil in Post-Soeharto Indonesia “, The Journal of Asian Studies, 66 (2/May): 389–420.
Allen, Pam (2007) “Challenging Diversity?: Indonesia’s Anti-Pornography Bill”, Asian Studies Review, 31 (June): 101-15.
INDONESIAN LANGUAGES: HISTORY AND POLITICS
Anderson, Benedict (1990) “Languages of Indonesian Politics”, in Language and Power; Exploring Political Cultures in Indonesia, Jakarta: Equinox, pp. 123-51.
Smith-Hefner, Nancy J. (2007) “Youth Language, Gaul Sociability, and the New Indonesian Middle Class”, Journal of Linguistic Anthropology, 17 (2): 184–203.
GENDERS IN POST-AUTHORITARIAN MOMENTS
Hatley, Barbara (2008) “Hearing Women’s Voices, Contesting Women’s Bodies in Post New Order Indonesia”, Intersections: Gender and Sexuality in Asia and the Pacific, 16 (March).
Nilan, Pam (2009) “Contemporary Masculinities and Young Men in Indonesia”, Indonesia and the Malay World, 37 (109): 327-44.
SOCIAL CLASSES
Wright, Erik O (2009) “Understanding Class”, New Left Review, 60 (Nov-Dec): 101-116.
Rinaldo, Rachel (2008) “Muslim women, middle class habitus, and modernity in Indonesia”, Contemporary Islam, 2 (1): 23-39.
IDEOLOGY: OFFICIAL AND EVERYDAY FORMS
Foulcher, Keith (1990) “The Construction of an Indonesian National Culture: Patterns of Hegemony and Resistance”, in A. Budiman (ed.), State and Civil Society in Indonesia, Clayton: Centre of Southeast Asian Studies, pp. 301-20.
Bourchier, David (1998) “Indonesianising Indonesia: Conservative Indigenism in an Age of Globalisation”, Social Semiotics, 8 (2/3): 203-14.
NEW MEDIA AS RESISTANCE?
Sen, Krishna (2003) “Radio days: Media-Politics in Indonesia”, The Pacific Review, 16 (4): 573-89.
Steele, Janet (2003) “Representations of ‘The Nation’ in Tempo Magazine”, Indonesia, 76 (October): 127-45.
Majors
Minors
Fees
Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.
If you are a domestic graduate coursework or international student you will be required to pay tuition fees. Tuition fees are indexed annually. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.
- Student Contribution Band:
- 1
- Unit value:
- 6 units
If you are an undergraduate student and have been offered a Commonwealth supported place, your fees are set by the Australian Government for each course. At ANU 1 EFTSL is 48 units (normally 8 x 6-unit courses). You can find your student contribution amount for each course at Fees. Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.
| Units | EFTSL |
|---|---|
| 6.00 | 0.12500 |
Course fees
- Domestic fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2015 | $2604 |
- International fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2015 | $3576 |
Offerings, Dates and Class Summary Links
ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.
Class summaries, if available, can be accessed by clicking on the View link for the relevant class number.
First Semester
| Class number | Class start date | Last day to enrol | Census date | Class end date | Mode Of Delivery | Class Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2435 | 16 Feb 2015 | 06 Mar 2015 | 31 Mar 2015 | 29 May 2015 | In Person | N/A |
